1. Field of the Invention
The invention is concerned with the processing of location-aware events in a computer system running under the control of an operating system, and further running one or more applications. The invention is particularly but not exclusively concerned with the processing of location-aware events detected at a touch-sensitive surface associated with the computer system, and an application running on the computer system for handling location-aware events detected at the touch-sensitive surface.
2. Description of the Related Art
It is known generally in the art of computer systems to provide for the processing of location-aware events. A location-aware event is an event associated with a position on a display associated with the computer system, such position typically being an x,y coordinate. Typically, in prior art computer systems, a location-aware event is associated with a cursor event, the cursor being controlled by a mouse input for example.
It is also known in the art to provide computer systems with touch-sensitive display surfaces. Events associated with inputs detected at the touch-sensitive display surface are inherently location-aware events.
In certain computer systems in which touch-sensitive display surfaces are provided, it is desirable for inputs detected by the touch-sensitive display to be processed differently to other inputs, such as mouse inputs. For this reason, an operating system may be provided, running on the computer system, which is “touch-aware”. A “touch-aware” operating system supports touch, and allows touch inputs detected on the touch-sensitive display surface to be identified as touch inputs and processed separately to other inputs such as mouse inputs. This can be advantageous. For example an application running on the computer system may be specific to touch inputs, and touch data may be routed directly to such an application rather than being routed via the operating system.
With such a “touch-aware” operating system, touch events can be processed differently to other input data. However such an operating system may have disadvantages by being inflexible in always directing touch events to an application. In certain scenarios, this may not be desirable.
However a touch-sensitive display surface may also be provided in a computer system which does not have a “touch-aware” capability with its operating system. In such a system, input data from the touch-sensitive display surface cannot be identified as touch data, and is identified and processed as mouse data. This means that data received at the touch-sensitive display surface cannot be identified as such, and cannot be routed directly to a touch-specific application. It is possible to ensure that touch data is directed to a touch-specific application in such an environment, by simply directing all input data to the application. However this then results in data which needs to be processed by the operating system being sent to the application. Thus the choice in such an environment is to direct all input data to the operating system, or direct all input data to the application.
With such a non-touch-aware operating system, there is no flexibility to process touch events differently to other input data, such that advantages offered by touch-aware operating systems, when a touch-sensitive display surface is provided, cannot be achieved.
It is an aim of the present invention to provide an improvement in the processing of input data in a computer system incorporating a touch-sensitive display surface.